updated 06:38 am EDT, Tue October 15, 2013

Claims customers can 'continue to count on BlackBerry'

BlackBerry has issued a letter to its customers, advising "You can continue to count on BlackBerry." The letter is an attempt by the company to put its customers at ease following the large number of negative headlines in the media in the last few months, ranging from the poor sales of its smartphones, to the ongoing potential breakup and sale discussions, to the massive job losses.

The letter, sent to and published by a number of outlets including theGlobe and Mail, tells customers that it has "substantial cash on hand and a balance sheet that is debt free," and that it is currently restructuring to cut its expenses by 50 percent. On the "dramatic headlines," the company writes that "it's important that we set the record straight on a few things," before giving a general overview of the company's successes and what it is doing for the future, though seemingly does not outline any specific headline that it wants to correct.

Though there is talk of BlackBerry co-founders Mike Lazaridis and Douglas Fregin considering a takeover bid for the company, along with the possible backing out of an $4.7 billion offer by Fairfax Financial Holdings, other groups are said to be interested in the company. Sources ofReuters claim that Cisco, SAP, and Google are in discussion with BlackBerry over the possible sale of all or part of the company.

The letter also provides a minor update for its iOS and Android BlackBerry Messenger apps, in that the company has already received 6 million pre-registrations for the BBM service on the platforms. Though the letter does not state when it will be fully launched, chief marketing officer Frank Boulben advises that it will be available on both Android and iOS "within days," and that its initial launch issues will be fixed for this second attempt.